Courthouse Won't Be Done Until October

Orange County Said The Builder Is Making A ''good-faith Effort'' To Speed Up Work.

March 1, 1997|By Cory Lancaster of The Sentinel Staff

The builder of Orange County's $182.5 million courthouse has fallen another month behind schedule and now does not expect to finish the project until Oct. 1.

The new date, made public Friday in letters between county officials and courthouse builder Morse Diesel International Inc., puts the courthouse complex nine months behind its original completion date.

County officials have been pressuring the builder to quicken the pace on the 24-story courthouse tower and adjacent buildings.

In January, the county demanded the builder provide a realistic schedule to complete the project or risk being fired. That new schedule publicized Friday says work will be ''substantially'' complete on July 31, meaning all but minor details. All work will be done on Oct. 1.

''We are encouraged by their activities the last several weeks,'' Deputy County Administrator Howard Tipton said. ''We feel they've made a good-faith effort.''

Morse Diesel blames the county for a variety of delays and is sending bills for the additional time and money. The builder and several subcontractors already have asked for an extra $7.6 million. And Morse Diesel officials expect to send a second bill next month, said Chief Operating Officer John Cavanagh.

''There are a number of changes that we feel we have certain claims to,'' he said. ''We will be submitting those shortly.''

In the meantime, the builder continues to accrue $20,000 per day in fines for not completing the project on time.

Construction started on the new courthouse in April 1994 and fell behind almost immediately because of delays in building the foundation.

Bad weather and problems with installing windows further stalled the project.

The problems have led to a flurry of lawsuits involving the county, the builder and subcontractors.

If the builder sticks to the new schedule, 800 judicial system workers may be able to move in by late summer, Tipton said.